Tentatively Patriotic: Living in Harper's Canada

"The fact of the matter is, words mean things," said my friend, a United Church pastor, as we sat inside a Boston Pizza yesterday evening on Canada's birthday. "And this new law that's passed making it harder to curb and prosecute hate speech isn't about freedom to say whatever the hell you want. It's about making it okay for hate to grow and thrive without consequence."

Lately, I've felt like being a Canadian has been hard. And I hate saying that, because I'm really proud of living in this country. Every morning, I used to stand in my public school, facing the flag, and sing "O Canada". And every morning, I was proud that I got to do that. I was raised to be patriotic. I was raised to think that Canada was the best country in the world -- not out of any sense of smugness or joy of lording it over other countries -- but in a grateful way. I was lucky that I got to live here in the best country in the world.

But it's been hard to remember that I am lucky to live in the true North, strong and free. Because I don't agree with the abuses of power that Stephen Harper and his Conservative government have displayed. I don't agree with the lack of focus on Aboriginals and their distress and rights, continuing a long and bloody history that we have the power to change. I don't agree with the fact that our tradition of having no tolerance for hate speech has been changed and molded to make it hard for anyone to stand up and speak out without a load of red tape through the courts.

We're not perfect, and we never have been. But lately, Harper has been slowly eroding Canada into something unrecognizable. Environmental protections have been stripped away to make way for rich people to just get richer. Aboriginal rights have been ignored and pushed aside. We have fallen from being one of the top countries to live in to the 11th best country to live in. This is not my Canada.

But I read something yesterday, and that message was "burdens are blessings." We are fighting people, people who have eked out a living in a harsh environment and survived. And I won't let my pride in my country be changed or destroyed by a government that wants to change and denigrate Canada's place in the world. We have the voices and the freedoms to speak up against these changes and to insist on better. That's the spirit of Canada -- and that's what I feel lucky to embody. I stand for change, and I strive to embody the spirit of Canada -- people who work for better.

Words mean things, which means that I'm using mine to speak up for a Canada that used to be one of the most highly respected nations in the world. We have made mistakes -- grave mistakes -- in the past and in the present. But with our burdens, come our blessings: the ability to change and grow and to leave a better Canada than we experience now.

I'm still just as patriotic as I always was. I just don't have to accept Canada as it is now -- and neither does anyone else.

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Memorable Stephen Harper Pictures

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Stephen Harper and wife Laureen in 2011.
Source: Flickr

Part of a painting of Prime Minister Stephen Harper fully nude, by Kingston artist Maggie Sutherland, is shown at the Central Kingston public library in Kingston, Ont. on May 18, 2012.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper gets behind the bar at the Victoria pub in Montreal Friday, March 16, 2012 where he stopped in to meet some supporters and have a drink for St. Patricks Day.

Conservative leader Stephen Harper and Laureen Harper stand next to a tray of hot cross buns at a bakery in Mississauga, on April 23, 2011.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, far left, watches a third round match between Agnieszka Radwanska, of Poland, and Serbia's Jelena Jankovic with his children Rachel, center, and Benjamin, right, at the 2012 US Open tennis tournament, Saturday, Sept. 1, 2012, in New York.

Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, speaks with Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper during Canada Day celebrations on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on July 1, 2011.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his son Ben watch a bloopers show while attending the Calgary Flames NHL hockey game against the Edmonton Oilers in Calgary, Saturday, April 11, 2009.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper practices a few chords after arriving at home from work. February 19, 2011.
Source: Pm.gc.ca

Conservative leader Stephen Harper gets a hug from his mother Margaret during a visit to his campaign office in Calgary, Saturday May 29, 2004.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper holds up a moustache scarf to kick off the start of ‘Movember’, November 1, 2012
Source: Flickr

Senior Legislative Assistant, Katherine Locke, left, and Government House Leader Special Assistant, Zoe Lawson, show off their House of Commons gingerbread house to Prime Minister Stephen Harper in his office on Dec. 16, 2010. The gingerbread house was filled with rows of gummi bears as members of Parliament.
Source: Pm.gc.ca

Prime Minister Stephen Harper waves to tourists as he walks on the beach after the closing of the VI Summit of the Americas on April 15, 2012 in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper plays a game of table tennis with Team Canada's Mo Zhang at Canada House in London on Tuesday, June 5, 2012.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper tries on an old hockey helmet at he tours the Yukon's Hockey History exhibit at the McBride Museum in Whitehorse, Yukon on Thursday, August 25, 2011.

Stephen Harper, his son Ben, and Wayne Gretzky watch the men's ice hockey team's gold medal game at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Source: Flickr

Stephen Harper and his son Ben hit balloons into the crowd after his speech at the party's three-day policy convention in Montreal on Friday March 18, 2005.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Jamie Robinson (guitar) play along with Blue Rodeo's front man Jim Cuddy, and recording artist Jimmy Rankin as they belt out a tune during a Juno Awards reception at 24, Sussex March 31, 2012.
Source: Pm.gc.ca

Prime Minister Stephen Harper, looks up from dishing out pancakes at Stampede breakfast in Calgary, Alta., Sunday, July 10, 2011.

Clowns ham it up with Prime Minister Stephen Harper at the IAAF World Junior Championships in Moncton, New Brunswick. July 19, 2010.
Source: Pm.gc.ca

Prime Minister Stephen Harper, left, throws Senator Gerry St. Germain's cowboy hat into the crowd after presenting him with a new one as his wife Margaret St. Germain, right, laughs during a barbecue at St. Germain's ranch in Surrey, B.C., on Monday August 6, 2012.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper gives the thumbs up from the cockpit of his campaign plane as he arrives in Ottawa,Tuesday May 3, 2011.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper poses for a photograph with Halloween trick-or-treaters at his official residence in Ottawa, Wednesday, October 31, 2012.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper bundles up in a parka as he tours Frobisher Bay in Iqaluit, Nunavut on Thursday, February 23, 2012.

Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper adjusts his hat prior to the arrival of Britain's Prince William and his wife Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, for the official start of the Calgary Stampede parade in Calgary, Alberta, July 8, 2011.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his wife Laureen play with some furry friends at the official opening of the new Ottawa Humane Society facility on July 6, 2011.
Source: Pm.gc.ca

Met Batisse X, official mascot of the Royal 22nd Regiment, prior to welcoming French PM Jean-Marc Ayrault to Ottawa.
Source: Flickr

Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his wife Laureen, left, make cookies with 10-year-old brain cancer survivor Baxton Wacholtz, right, and his mom Michelle, of Telkwa, B.C., during a photo opportunity at Ronald McDonald House in Vancouver, B.C., on Tuesday August 7, 2012.